To have fun with a different type of party, hold a Breakfast at Tiffany’s theme cocktail party with 1961 era fashion, décor, music, dance, movies, drinks, and food. Audrey Hepburn played in the popular Breakfast at Tiffany’s movie which was released in 1961.
Audrey Hepburn (1929 – 1993) a British American actress and fashion icon in film, stage, and TV. She is ranked as the third-greatest female screen legend from Classical Hollywood cinema. As well, she was inducted into the International Best Dressed Hall of Fame List. Hepburn won an Oscar with 7 nomination, 3 BAFTA with 5 nominations, 2 Golden Globes with 10 nominations, an Emmy, a Tony, and a Grammy.
Audrey Hepburn is known for her many films, including Breakfast At Tiffany’s, Roman Holiday with Gregory Peck, Funny Face with Fred Astaire, Charade with Cary Grant, Sabrina with William Holden and Humphrey Bogart, My Fair Lady with Rex Harrison, War and Peace with Mel Ferrer and Henry Fonda, How to Steal a Million with Peter O’Toole, and Robin and Marian with Sean Connery.
Moon River theme song from the Breakfast At Tiffany’s movie sung by Audrey Hepburn
Party scene from Breakfast At Tiffany’s.
Party scene from Breakfast At Tiffany’s
Fashion 1961
Audrey Hepburn
Style has always been important, both formal and casual. Women spent time and energy selecting their wardrobe choices—donning elegant suits or dresses, along with trendy high heels, stockings, matching jewelry, stylish hats, purse, and mandatory gloves to complete their ensembles. Women’s fashion emphasized an hour glass shape with enhanced bust and hips with a cinched in waist. Both billowing skirts and slim fitted pencil skirts were popular. Hemlines were at mid-knee in the early 1960s. Make-up was bold: big thick eyebrows, eyeliner big cat eyes, bright eye shadow, rouge, and dark red lips. Hippy and Mod styles came in the late 1960s with bell bottoms, mini-skirts, and othrs.
Natural fibers of cotton, linen, and wool were always popular. Wools included tweed, gabardine, serge, velour, and sharkskin. Cottons included denim, chambray, corduroy, gingham, gabardine, crepe, damask, pique, and twill. Popular spring colors were soft pastels such as light pink, powder blue, cream, aqua, rose, maize, lilac, Kelly green, and lavender. Fall and winter colors included deep hues such as charcoal, rust, brown, teal, black, royal blue, navy, olive, purple, and red. Popular prints included plaid, polka dots, checks, flora, and abstract patterns.
Casual clothing for women included A-line midi skirts, capris pants, cropped trousers, high waist shorts, cardigan sweaters, gingham, checks or polka dots, and denim jeans. Pool side glamour included silk hair wraps, large rim hats, and one piece swim suits, with the new fashion bikinis just beginning.
Ladies’ accessories included decorative hats, scarves, gloves, and cat eye shaped sunglasses. It was considered standard for women to wear a girdle, garters, nylon stockings, slips, and petticoats. Shoe choices were classy single color pumps, flats, wedges, and loafers. Jewelry included slim watches, clip-on earrings (no one had pierced ears), beaded jewelry, and if they could afford it, showing off gold, diamonds, and pearls.
Men wore suits with pocket squares, starched straight collared or Oxford button down cotton shirts with cuff linked sleeves, and wore white T-shirts underneath. Narrow silk ties with printed patterns were popular. Sport jackets were worn on occasion with a tie or turtlenecks. Polished dressy leather Oxford shoes were worn. Men wore leather-banded watches, fitted overcoats or raincoats, and hats started to go out of style. Casual clothing often consisted of sports jackets and often with outdoors, golf, tennis, horse-riding, or boating apparel. The popularity of blue and white Levi jeans among youth came in the late 1960s.
Women’s Cocktail Dress
Nothing says 1960s like the classic cocktail dress. A cocktail party demanded effort and an attempt at elegance. A party was a chance to dress up more than usual. Cocktail dresses were either slim or were billowing and fluffy with petticoats. Fabrics included chiffon, crepe, lace, and silk. Women wore high heels and jewelry. High heel pumps that paired well with the dress added a sophisticated finish. Shoes were simple and understated to let the dress shine.
Cocktail dresses were fashioned from glamorous designs by leading Paris salons like Dior and Givenchy who created “The New Look”. The New Look used billowing, extravagant dresses that enhanced the figure to be ultra-feminine. Anything French was all the rage. The style was copied by more affordable retailers. Hollywood picked up on The New Look worn by Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, and others.
Antiques & Arts Magazine described the cocktail dress: “There dresses emphasized romantic feminine hourglass silhouettes full of skirts of luxurious, expensive fabric, layers of petticoats and lengthened hemlines, sloping shoulders, cinched waists, padded hips and a long, rounded back added to its appropriateness for cocktail party viewing.”
Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn in Charade.
Natalie Wood
Elizabeth Taylor
Brigitte Bardot
Sophia Loren
Julie London
Elvis Presley and Ann Margaret in Viva Las Vegas
Doris Day
Shirley MacLaine
Angie Dickinson
Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford
Sean Connery, James Bond
Marcello Mastroianni and in 8 1/2
Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman
1961 Pop and Lounge Music
The leading singers of the era included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Elvis Presley, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Brenda Lee, Etta James, Bobby Darin, Dinah Washington, Peggy Lee, Nat King Cole, Roy Orbison, Connie Francis, Andy Williams, and others.
Roy Orbison Crying, 1961
Elvis Presley
Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin Beyond the Sea
Jazz
Jazz in the Fifties and Sixties was very popular and many of the vocal crooners sang jazz, such as Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Nat King Cole, and Frank Sinatra. Leading jazz musicians included: Miles Davis- John Coltrane Quintet, Dave Brubeck, Stan Getz, Theloniuos Monk, Modern Jazz Quartet, Erroll Garner, Bill Evans, and others.
Miles Davis and John Coltrane So What
Dave Brubeck Take Five
Miles Davis- John Coltrane Quintet
R&B
Leading R&B singers were Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Barbara Lewis, Etta James, Righteous Brothers, Della Reese, Jackie Wilson, Platters, Miracles, Drifters, Dinah Washington.
Barbara Lewis Hello Stranger
Righteous Brothers You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling
Bossa Nova
Bossa Nova is a smooth music style of Br
azilian samba that become very popular in the 1960s. Leading bossa nova artists included Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilgerto, Astrud Gilberto, Baden Powell, Luis Bonfa, and Sergio Mendes.
The Girl From Ipanema, Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto, 1962
Etta James
1960s Party Games
Parties were often organized by the host with optional games, dance, singing, cards, and board games. Often there would be door prizes which can include movie tickets, gift certificates, lottery tickets, and other items.
Hula Hoop
Hula Hoop Contest
Divide people into smaller groups. Each person performing gets a hula hoop. Play music and players work the hoops. The top two from each group are picked and compete in the final round. Door prizes are given to the Best, Second, and Third players.
Twister Contest
Is played on a large plastic mat spread on the floor. The mat has large color circles. A spinner picks color, feet, and hands. Players must move their matching hand or foot to the right color circle. Players get all tangled up in hilarious positions. A person is eliminated when they fall or touch the mat with their knees or elbows. Prizes for winners.
Twister
Limbo Stick
Played to Caribbean music, people line up and one by one go under the limbo stick. After each round the stick is lowered. Play continues until there is only one person left. Prizes for First, Second, and Third places.
Charades
Charades
A popular word guessing game. Teams are chosen. An actor from the team is chosen to mime a selected word without speaking. A set time is set for the team to guess the word. Scores are kept. Play continues until all players have a chance to act at least once.
Common signals:
- Number of fingers for words
- One for first word, etc.
- Number of fingers on the arm for syllables
- Earlobe for sounds like
- Hands close for shorter
- Hands apart for more
- Come here gesture for close, keep guessing
- Touch nose and point to the person for a correct guess
Name That Tune
Play a beginning or portion to a popular 1960s song. The first to blurt out the title gets a point. Another point for the person who names the singer. A third point is awarded to anyone who can name the movie or musical the song came from.
Twist Contest
Have a twist dance contest to music. Prizes for First, Second, and Third places. (see Dances section below).
Popular Dances, 1960
Twist
The Twist was a worldwide dance craze of the early 1960s, started by Chubby Checker’s number one hit The Twist. The Twist is danced with feet shoulder width apart. The arms are held out front of the body with elbows bent. The hips, torso, and legs rotate on the balls of the feet as a single unit. The feet grind back and forth on the floor, like putting out a cigarette.
Twist
Mambo
Mambo, like Salsa, is in a 4/4 time, with three steps to the beats on the 2 forward (quick), 3 back (quick), and 4 together (slow), and three steps on the 6 back, 7 forward, and 8 together (quick quick slow). It moves forward on three steps and backward on three steps. As the man goes forward the woman goes backward, as the man goes backward the woman goes forward. Dancers face each other in a closed position. Dancers sway their hips in a fluid Cuban motion.
Mambo
The Hully Gully
A popular line dance on the American Bandstand TV show. An MC calls out moves and dancers dance back and forth patterns, side steps, kicks, right turns, crossing feet, walking turn arounds, and hand clapping.
The Hully Gully
The Madison
A popular line dance on the American Bandstand TV show. Similar to the Hully Gully. An MC calls out moves and dancers dance back and forth patterns, side steps, kicks, right turns, crossing feet, walking turn arounds, and hand clapping.
The Madison
Others dances
- Locomotion – simple line dance, rock forward and back pumping arms like a locomotive
- Mashed Potato – side triple steps with foot swivels like mashing potatoes
- The Pony – bouncing step like riding a horse
- Hitch Hike – simple line dance waving thumb like hitch-hiking
- Watusi – solo dance with arms and body straight, small steps like walking on sand
Cocktails, 1961
Social drinking was the norm in the Sixties, as seen on the Mad Men TV sho, the Sinatra Rat Pack, and in James Bond movies. Men and women would often have a drink after work to unwind. To encourage women’s drinking, bartenders invented fruity and sweet cocktails.
Punch Bowls
A punch bowl was always available at a party for guests to serve themselves. The punch bowl would include a ladle and matching glasses. Popular punches include:
- Planter Punch – rum, curacao, bitters, grenadine, lemon juice, pineapple juice, lime juice, orange juice, and soda water.
- Pim’s Cup – Pim’s, lemonade, orange slices, lemon, apple
- Champagne Punch – champagne, brandy, rum, curacao, pineapple, lemon juice, and maraschino cherries.
- Gin Punch – gin, ginger ale, orange juice, lemonade, pineapple juice, lime juice, strawberries, and sugar.
- Mimosa – champagne and orange juice.
Manhattan
2 parts rye whisky or bourbon or Canadian whisky
1 part sweet red vermouth
1 dash Angostura bitters
Mix with ice, stir and strain into a chilled martini glass.
Garnish with a cocktail cherry.
Martini
6 parts gin (or old traditional 4 parts)
1 part dry vermouth
Mix in a shaker with ice, strain into a chilled martini glass.
Garnish with lemon peel oil and olives.
A vodka martini is the same but uses vodka instead of gin.
Old Fashioned
2 parts bourbon or rye whiskey
1 sugar cube
few dashes Angostura bitters
few dashes of water
Muddle sugar, bitters, and water in an old fashioned glass. Fill with ice and whisky, stir.
Garnish with an orange slice and a cocktail cherry.
Stinger
3 parts cognac or brandy
1 part white crème de menthe
Mix with ice, strain into a chilled martini glass.
Garnish with mint leaves.
Daiquiri
2 parts rum
1 part fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons sugar
Stir, dissolve sugar, add ice, shake, strain into a chilled martini glass.
Tom Collins
3 parts gin
2 parts lemon juice
1 part sugar syrup
4 parts soda water
Mix in a Tom Collins glass with ice.
Garnish with a lemon slice and a cocktail cherry.
Bloody Mary
3 parts vodka
6 parts tomato juice
2 to 3 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
Add Tabasco, celery salt, black pepper, and horseradish to taste.
Stir, pour over ice into a highball glass.
Garnish with a celery stalk and a lemon wedge.
Whisky Sour
3 parts bourbon
2 parts fresh lemon juice
1 part sugar syrup
Shake with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass.
Sidecar
2 parts cognac or brandy
1 part orange liquor
1 fresh lemon juice
Shake with ice, strain into a chilled martini glass.
Pina Colada
1 part white rum
1 part coconut cream
3 parts fresh pineapple juice
Blend all ingredients with ice, pour into a hurricane glass.
Garnish with a pineapple slice and cocktail cherry.
Margarita
10 parts tequila
4 parts orange liquor
3 parts fresh lime juice
Shake all ingredients with ice, strain into a chilled margarita glass.
Garnish with salt on the glass rim.
1960s Party Food
Cocktail party appetizers and entries were elegant preparations to impress the guests with a mix of rich gourmet delicacies and tasty comfort food to compliment the cocktail beverages. Many 1960s hors d’oeuvres were influenced by French cuisine as part of the American fascination with French style and culture at the time.
The following is a list of authentic food served at 1960s parties. You will notice that most of these are still served at parties today. To get ideas it is helpful to look at old cook books, such as Better Homes and Gardens, Good Housekeeping, James Beard, Joy of Cooking, Julia Child, and Betty Crocker.
Oysters Rockefeller
Wash 24 oysters and open into a half shell. In a saucepan mix: 1 cup chopped cooked spinach, 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, 3/4 cup butter, 1 tb parsley, 1 tb minced onion, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/4 tsp basil, 1/4 tsp paprika, and a dash of cayenne. Heat through. Spoon one tablespoon of spinach mixture atop each oyster half shell and bake at 450 degrees F for 10 minutes. Garnish with lemon wedges.
Salmon Mousse
Flake, debone, deskin, and strain one 15 ½ oz. can of salmon. Reserve the salmon fluid and heat it along with two gelatin envelopes. Add 1 1/4 cup of mayonnaise, 1/4 cup tomato sauce, 2 tb of lemon juice, 2 tsp Worcestershire, and partially chill. Fold in salmon, 1/2 cup finely chopped celery, 2 chopped hard boiled eggs minced, 2 tb chives chopped, and 1/4 tsp pepper. Fold in 1/2 cup whipping cream and then pour into a mold. Chill until firm. Unmold mousse unto a tray and with crackers and cucumber slices.
Caviar
Most often caviar is served on crème fraiche (buttermilk and heavy cream) or sour cream, over a blini pancake or toast point, and often garnished with minced onion and crumbled hard boiled eggs. Make sure to use plastic spoons when serving and enjoying caviar, since metal changes the taste.
Lobster Newburg
3/4 pound of cooked lobster meat broken into chunks
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 egg yolks, beaten
1/4 cup butter
2 tb sherry
1/2 tsp salt
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 pinch ground nutmeg
Whisk cream and yolks, melt butter and stir in cream mixture and sherry, cook 5 to 8 minutes, do not boil, remove from heat, add spices and lobster, cook 5 minutes. Serve in puff pastry shells.
Waldorf Salad
2 cups tart apples diced
1 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup walnuts roughly chopped
1 cup grapes cut up
Make a dressing of 1/4 cup mayonaise, 1/2 cup whipping cream, 2 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper. Fold in other ingredients. Chill for 1 hour or overnight.
Chicken Ala King
4 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves cut up
1 (4.5 oz) can of mushrooms
1 green pepper, chopped
4 oz. pimento, chopped
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup flour
1 1/4 cup hot water
1 1/2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Saute mushrooms and bell peppers in butter for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add flour, salt, pepper, cook over low heat until bubbly. Stir in milk, water, bouillon, bring to boil. Stir in chicken and pimento. Serve in puff pastry shells.
Spinach-Artichoke Dip – a baked dip with chopped spinach, chopped artichokes, mayonnaise, cream cheese, sour cream, parmesan, and one package of Knorr Vegetable Recipe Mix.
Stuffed Mushrooms
Baked or broiled mushroom caps that can be stuffed with any combination of cheese, bacon, artichoke, crab, bread crumbs, spinach, onion, pecans, sausage, clams, oysters, or other items.
Prosciutto Wraps – melon balls, pineapple, figs, dates, pear, apple, peaches, apricots, nectarines, shrimp, mussels, grilled asparagus, goat cheese, mozzarella, or other items.
Fondue
A hot melted cheese dip in a fondue pot used to dip food items on long stemmed forks. Cheeses most often used include Swiss, emmenthaler, gruyere, and fontina. Items to dip can be cubes of bread, fruit, cooked vegetables, and other items.
Bruchetta
Grilled bread topped with olive oil, chopped tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, prosciutto, grilled peppers and onions, and other items.
Canapes
A savory food or a spread placed on a small piece of rye or pumpernickel bread, puff pastry, cracker, or cucumber slice. Items would be placed on a crème or cheese spread and often garnished with capers, sliced cucumber, crumpled hard-boiled egg, or chopped onion. Usual items on the canape could include: caviar, crab, lobster, lox, smoked salmon, foie gras, liver pate, anchovy, truffles, sautéed mushrooms, smoked oysters, cheese, prosciutto, or other items.
Crab Dip – dip prepared with cream cheese and lump crab meat. Additional items may include artichoke, onion, peppers, parmesan, and other. Baked or served cold.
Shrimp Cocktail – cooked, peeled, and deveined shrimp, served with lemon wedges and cocktail sauce. Cocktail sauce can be made with chili sauce, catchup, horseradish, Tabasco, and lemon juice.
Swedish Meatballs
In a mixing bowl add 1 pound of ground beef, 1 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1/2 cup dry sherry, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp pepper. Shape into 40 meatballs, coat in flour, brown in a skillet with 2 tb oil, drain on paper towel. To skillet add 2 tb butter, 1 tb flour, one 10 1/2 oz. can condensed beef consume, and 1/4 cup heavy cream. Add meatballs and 1 bayleaf. Simmer 15 minutes, serve on a hot chafing dish.
Other Items
- Salads
- Party snacks, Chex Mix, chips, pretzels, popcorn
- Cheese, salami, crackers
- Olives, pickles
- Liver pate, foie gras
- Bacon wraps
- Skewers with fruit, vegetables, cheese
- Stuffed celery
- Stuffed tomatoes
- Stuffed eggs
- Desserts
- Coffee
References
News Magazines – Time, Life, Look, Saturday Evening Post
Women’s Magazines 1960a
Cosmopolitan, Family Circle, Glamour, Good Housekeeping, Ladies Home Journal, McCall’s, Redbook, Vogue, Woman’s Day, Woman’s Home, Woman’s Journal
Music
- Billboard, Rolling Stone, Allmusic
- Rock n’ Roll in the 50s and 60s, Jim Orr, 2019.
- The Essential Album Guide to Martini Music, Steve Knopper, Visible Ink, 1998.
- Lounge Music, Hal Leonard, 1997.
Food
- Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book, 1951.
- Good Housekeeping Cook Book, 1958.
- The Joy of Cooking, 4th Edition, Irma S. Rombauer, 1951.
Fashion and Vintage Clothing
- Sears Catalogs, 1960s
- Vintage Fashions for Women: The 1950s and 60s, Kristina Harris, 1997.
Cocktail Parties
- Entertaining, Martha Stewart, 1998.
- Cocktail Parties, Ben Masters, Georgeanne Brenan, 2000.
- The Everything Cocktail Parties and Drink Book, Cheryl Charon, 2000.
Bartender Guide books
- The Bar Book: Elements of Cocktail Technique, Jeffrey Morganthaler.
- The Ultimate Bar Book, Mittie Hellmich.
Film – IMDB, Allmovie, Rotten Tomatoes, Wikipedia
